Pork Chops with Wine and lots of Garlic

I just got back from a trip to FL. I had a wonderful time. My first stop was at St. Pete’s Beach to visit my brother. There I was able to relish in the warmth of the sun, food, sunsets and spending time with great people.

When traveling, I always try to find a restaurant that was on Food TV. There is a website and phone app called TV Food Maps. It will show you places near to where you are at that was on a TV show. On the website, you can actually road map your trip and then it will show you all the spots to hit on your way. Pretty cool. Anyway, we went to Keegan’s. It was on Diner’s Drive In’s and Dives.   I had to talk myself into it, but I had to try the Baked Octopus & Feta Cheese Baked in a terrine w/feta cheese & Greek hot peppers. It was pretty good. I wanted to try the Char Broiled Octopus Cooked & steeped in garlic, wine & herbs, then finished on top of a lava rock flame…but they were out. For my dinner I ordered Blackened Grouper. It was fantastic.

Baked Octopus & Feta Cheese Baked in a terrine w/feta cheese & Greek hot peppers.

It was very garlicky. I think if I would have been even better if I did not have to look at it

Blackened Grouper

I had the opportunity to go on a huge boat. It was a lot of fun. The best part was, there was one dolphin that followed us for a long time. He would turn on his side and look up at us. It was pretty cool.

After visiting my brother, I was off to meet Mark and Samantha at Pharmacy Development Conference in Orlando. The company that Samantha’s works for puts on this conference. Here we were energized with new ideas to make our pharmacy even better I was a very proud Momma here. Samantha was one of the CE speakers. She spoke in front of 700 people. She did an awesome job.

Mark came home at lunch today and said "Pretty Cool that I got Continuing Education hours from my daughter"

So proud of her! She did an awesome job!

OK, onto a recipe. It was Valentine’s Day the day before I left, so I made a yummy supper for Mark and the girls. Holy Cow, this was a great sauce! This is a PW (aka Pioneer Woman) recipe, which are usually awesome recipes. Click here to check this recipe out and her website.

Pork Chops with Wine and Garlic

• 6 whole Pork Chops (medium-to-thin)
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 2 Tablespoons Butter
• Salt And Pepper
• 1-1/2 cup Red Wine (Note this is not vinegar, that is what is in the photo and what I read it as. Glad I caught it before I put in Red Wine VINEGAR)
• 1/2 cup Beef Broth (more If Needed)
• 1 whole Bay Leaf
• 1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
• 18 whole Peeled Garlic Cloves
• 1 Tablespoon Butter (additional)

Heat oil and butter in a heavy skillet over high heat. Salt and pepper both sides of the pork chops and sear them on both sides until they’re nice and golden, about 2 minutes per side. (No need to completely cook the chops at this point.) Remove the chops from the skillet and set aside.

Reduce the heat to medium-high, then throw in the whole garlic cloves. Stir them around and cook them for several minutes, or until they get nice and golden brown.

Pour in the red wine, then add the bay leaf. Stir around and let it reduce, raising the heat if necessary. Cook the sauce for several minutes, or until it’s nice and reduced and thick.

Stir in the beef broth (you can add more if it needs the liquid) and add the chops back into the cooking liquid, arranging them so that they’re swimming in the sauce. Allow the chops to cook in the liquid for a few minutes, then pour in the balsamic. Shake the pan to get it to distribute, then cook for a couple more minutes, or until the pork chops are done.

Remove the chops from the pan once more, then let the sauce reduce a little more if needed until it’s very thick and rich and the garlic is soft. Swirl in 1 tablespoon of butter and sprinkle in a little salt and pepper.

Arrange pork chops on a platter, then pour the whole skillet of sauce (including garlic) over the top.

Ingredient Line! Remember, the red wine VINEGAR, should be Red Wine

Salt and Pepper the chops on both sides.

Then brown them on both sides in a heavy skillet with 2 tablespoons olive oil and butter over high heat.

Remove the pork chops to a plate and set them aside. Reduce the heat to medium-high and throw in the peeled garlic cloves. I know it looks like a lot of garlic, but it is soo good. It will keep the vampires away

After the garlic softens and gets a golden brown. Add wine.

Add bay leaf and let it reduce and the garlic to soften a but more.

Add beef broth and pop the pork chops back into the pan. As the chops cook, the juice from the chops will add to the flavor. Add more broth, if necessary.

Add Balsamic vinegar.

Remove chops; add butter to the sauce.

Pour the sauce over the chops and enjoy!

Our Valentines Dinner.

Trust me, you will love this recipe.

The sunsets were beautiful in Florida.

~Relish Food & Life!

Spiced Pork Chops with Sweet and Sour Glaze

Holy cow, I have not posted in a while. It has been crazy. Took a little trip to Nashville to see Samantha It was great seeing her.  It is crazy, I have never been to Nashville until this year and by the end of the year I will be there 4 times. It is a great city to visit.

I went to Alton Browns book signing in St. Louis.  He was fabulous and funny.

He was waiting for them to get done introducing him.

I was watching Giada on Food Network. She was making these amazing pork chops that were making me drool. It was super easy to make and delish.

                          Spiced Pork Chops with Sweet and Sour Glaze                                   adapted from Giada’s Recipe on Food Network

Pork:

• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus extra as needed
• 4 (8-ounce) boneless pork chops, about 1 1/2 inches thick
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes ( I really did not measure this, I just sprinkle each side with the red pepper.)

Glaze:

• 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 2 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 scallions, pale green and white parts only, finely chopped
• 1 2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes, at room temperature
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Pork: In a large, heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over high heat. Season the pork chops with salt and pepper, to taste, and sprinkle with the red pepper flakes. Add the pork to the pan and cook until cooked through. for about 5 to 6 minutes on each side, or Remove the pork from the pan, cover loosely with foil, and set aside.

Glaze: In a small saucepan, bring the vinegar, honey, garlic, scallions, and rosemary to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the honey has dissolved. Simmer for 9 minutes, or until slightly reduced. Remove the pan from the heat and whisk in the butter until smooth. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Arrange the pork chops on a platter and drizzle with the glaze.

Ingredient Line Up.

 

Mix all the glaze ingredients (except butter) in a saucepan.

Sprinkle each side with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes.

Heat oil and cook pork chops 5 to 6 minutes on each side.

Sautéed asparagus in a but of olive oil.

Simmer sauce

Whisk in butter and add salt and pepper.

Spiced Pork Chops with Sweet and Sour Glaze. Yum.

This was really tasty. Jim, a friend suggested that this sauce would be great on chicken or salmon. I agree with him. I served this with sautéed Asparagus and Roasted Sweet Potatoes.  If you have not tried the sweet potatoes, you need too! Seriously, even if you do not like sweet potatoes.

I hope to get back on schedule. Sorry for the delay in posting.

I am trying a Fresh Apple Cake w/ Brown Sugar Glaze today….stay tuned

Inspiring Thought of the Day.

~Relish Food & Life